The HACIA Scholarship & Education Foundation (HACIASEF) awarded up to $30,000 in scholarships to six deserving students studying in the construction field. Each student received a $5k scholarship that were presented at an intimate ceremony with HACIA Board Members on Thursday, July 8, 2021 at the East Bank Club.

The scholarships are made possible through ongoing individual, corporate and foundation donations. The 2021 Scholarships Recipients are:

Erika Vidales University of Illinois at Chicago 

An architect is a person who plans, designs, and reviews the construction of structures for people to inhabit, experience and create a place of their own. That is exactly what Erika Vidales wanted to be. “As a kid, I enjoyed building things and enjoyed figuring out how things worked. My curiosity and interest only grew as years went by,” said Erika. In middle school, her science teacher took notice of her passion and recommended a day-long intensive program for girls interested in pursuing an area of study within STEM. This opportunity gave her insight in her two most favorite fields that are not typically seen as a career for women to pursue, let alone a Latina. “When I joined the program, I was submerged in a world of knowledge that made me feel excited and hopeful for a future in engineering or architecture.” 

She joined the Science Olympics that challenged her understanding of design, science, technology, engineering and math and ended up winning first, third and fifth places out of seven events. This gave her the drive to work harder. She enrolled at the University of Illinois at Chicago studying in the field of architecture. Being the first of her family to go to college and first-generation born in the U.S. made it difficult financially and mentally due to the pressure to succeed. “As a Latina entering a male-dominated field and seeing that the academic program of engineering and architecture only had a 2-5% acceptance rate among Hispanics, gave me the added strength to pursue my dreams and fight for it.” 

Juliana Cardona Narvaz of Illinois Institute of Technology 

Since a child, Juliana Cardona Narvaz was exposed to construction sites, engineering, community work, art and architecture. From sheet fortresses to treehouse club designs, these were just a few events that helped her fall in love with architecture. Her passion in the field began with her mom, who was blind and needed special home arrangements to feel safe. Her mother needed a home built for her needs and, as part of the process, she had various architects showing her their designs. “I remember seeing their designed layouts and being taken to meet with the architect to pick a model best suited for my mother,” Juliana said. “I was amazed at how the architect created a structural model with sticks that represented the way the roof of the house was going to look like. I didn’t understand that this model allowed her mother to visualize the house.” The architect went above and beyond to think about her mom and her disability. It was something she never saw in other professions and got her curious about this profession. At 11 years-old, Juliana already decided that she wanted to work with the community and help build a brighter future and be part of it. After trying engineering, interior designs, sales and even politics, she discovered that architecture was the career path for her. And it was all due to her mother’s experience in the past that helped in her architectural aspirations.  

Miguel A. Sevilla Quintana of Illinois Institute of Technology 

Having to leave everything behind and having to start in a new place at the age of six was not easy for Miguel A. Sevilla Quintana. As an immigrant new to the country, rising racial and political tensions made it clear that some Americans didn’t want people in the country like him. As a recipient of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) has given him the opportunity to consider higher education, opening the doors to bigger aspirations and career choices. Before this, Miguel’s circumstances made him unable to work and made college financially unattainable. With DACA, he was able to discover architecture and pursue a career that makes an impact on the world. 

His entire life he lived in a predominately Hispanic, low-income community and it wasn’t until he became interested in architecture and higher education that he realized his community was not “normal.” “I didn’t realize that an overcrowded high school was a lack of materials and resources and that an alarmingly low graduation rate was not standard,” Miguel said. “This has led me to develop a special interest in communities like mine that are disadvantaged, and made me think of the impact that architecture can have on these communities.” Miguel is eager to help rebuild these communities that have been broken for years. 

 A person that Miguel has had the pleasure of meeting through his undergraduate experience and being part of Arquitectos was Juan Moreno, founder of JGMA. He shared a passion for the rehabilitation and investment of the neighbor communities in the West and South side of Chicago like no one he has ever met before. Learning about his past projects and how you can design facilities that minority-based communities can be proud of without spending a tremendous amount of money reassured him that it’s what he wants to pursue. “These facilities serve these communities with healthcare services, artistic development and educational opportunities created to help aid their youth and others in providing them with a better future,” said Miguel. “Architecture has made me much more aware of the place where I live and the problems my community faces. I look forward to helping these communities progress and bring about positive change.” 

Gerardo Mora Jr. of Illinois Institute of Technology 

Gerardo Mora, Jr.’s interest in the architectural, engineering, and construction fields is in the beautiful balance between art and science. Having a profound passion for building things as a child and helping out his father with home improvements, including new technologies that reshaped the way we experience our daily environment, had a major impact on him.  

When he was in 6th grade, he remembers his school undergoing a massive reconstruction. A once gloomy, industrial, and aged school had transformed into an inspiring and welcoming school that really improved his moral and motivated him. Now at a later age, he had the privilege of looking back and really understanding the impact architecture had on him.  

“The personal struggles as a Hispanic are dealing with and navigating the hardships that many don’t have, such as having to switch roles to be the leader the family needs in times of need,” Gerardo said. “And helping in ways our parents can’t because of the existing language barriers. You have to balance all of these different narratives.” Coming from a traditional Hispanic family, the idea of formal education is extra and unnecessary when it comes to finding a good paying job. You are to question, “How can I break this barrier?” Growing older, Gerardo realized there are many people like him — the next generation of construction field — that have the opportunity of improving not only the work environment, but the living environment along with it.  

Orlando Solar Jr. of Purdue University 

Ever since Orlando Solar, Jr. was a child, he had an immense passion for construction. One of his favorite things to do growing up was visiting downtown Chicago to view all the architecture. Astonished by the design, craftsmanship, and the layout of the whole city, Orlando remembered telling his parents, “I am going to create something like that one day.” Whenever someone brought something for him to assemble, he was the first one to volunteer and build it. “The hunger for construction and architecture has always been in me,” said Orlando. Seeing his family working in the construction business made him eager to pursue the career even more. “The sense of pride and accomplishment they had when they completed a project was unexplainable. I wanted to feel that same feeling one day.”  

There have been obstacles in realizing his goal especially in the construction world where Hispanics face language barriers, cultural differences and economic disadvantages. “Being a Latino makes it difficult to have people view you as a leader. They think we are uneducated, untrained or unfit to lead, but I know that in the future this could be more than an issue than it is today,” Orland said.  “I am ready to face those challenges head on and prove to everyone that Hispanics are educated, trained and fit to lead any situation” 

Kianna Negron of University of Illinois at Chicago 

When Kianna Negron was in the fourth grade, she was given a class project that required her to analyze buildings in the downtown area and create a model. “The mix of this project with my admiration for the arts resulted in my interest in architecture,” said Kianna.  “The more I would learn about famous architects, the more I aspire to be just as great as them, regardless of my differences.” 

Her fourth-grade project on the John Hancock Center played a significant role in pushing her to pursue a career in the field. Although living in Chicago her entire life, she rarely had a chance to go downtown. Her parents took her to the building to take pictures for her project. “This was the first day that I was able to admire the architecture of Chicago. While I didn’t know any technical terms at the time, I admired how buildings were focused on being tall while others focused on designs and patterns.”  

To make the model, she had to use items from around the house like a cardboard pizza box. This allowed her to expand her creativity and created a tall model of the John Hancock Buidling that was over a foot long. As she grew older, she realized how much she missed having assignments like these and yearned for more.  

As a Hispanic woman, she experienced a big hardship in realizing her goal to pursue her career due to the lack of representation. “A lot of the architecture that was taught at my university was work of white or European males. Being a Hispanic woman seemed like a double negative,” Kianna said. “There had been instances where white males in my class would come up to me and questions why I want to be an architect by saying ‘People like you don’t belong here.’ To experience this in college, where we are all adults was upsetting.” People like these classmates made her realize that she might struggle, but it helped push even harder to be the successful in architecture and be proud of her identity. She wants to one day set an example for other Hispanic students in the field. 

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